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Biomedical subjects

A Terao

Publications and source records attributed to A Terao.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1995

Cerebellar ataxia in patients with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy.

We report the cases of a mother and son with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON), where a point mutation of mitochondria DNA from guanine to adenine on nucleotide position 11778 was verified. Both also had cerebellar ataxia and dysarthria and in both cases cerebellar atrophies were detected by computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. It was not possible to elucidate the relationship between LHON and the cerebellar atrophy, but it should be kept in mind that various neurological complications may occur in LHON.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Roles of prostaglandins D2 and E2 in interleukin-1-induced activation of norepinephrine turnover in the brain and peripheral organs of rats.

Possible roles of prostaglandins (PGs) in interleukin-1 (IL-1)-induced activation of noradrenergic neurons were examined by assessing norepinephrine (NE) turnover in the brain and peripheral organs of rats. An intraperitoneal injection of human recombinant IL-1 beta accelerated NE turnover in the hypothalamus, spleen, lung, diaphragm, and pancreas. A similar increase in NE turnover was also observed after intracerebroventricular injection of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). Pretreatment with indomethacin (cyclooxygenase inhibitor) abolished the IL-1-induced, but not the CRH-induced, increase in hypothalamic and splenic NE turnover. To elucidate which eicosanoid-cyclooxygenase product(s) is responsible for accelerating NE turnover, PGD2, PGE2, PGF2 alpha, U-46619 (stable thromboxane A2 analogue), or carbacyclin (stable prostacyclin analogue) was administered intracerebroventricularly. Among them, PGE2 was the only eicosanoid effective in increasing NE turnover in spleen, whereas PGD2 was effective in the hypothalamus. The stimulative effect of PGD2 was abolished by pretreatment with intracerebroventricular injection of a CRH antiserum. These results suggest that the action of IL-1 is mediated through PGD2 production to activate the noradrenergic neurons in the hypothalamus, and through PGE2 production to increase sympathetic nerve activity in spleen.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

[Serial 123I-IMP SPECT in a case of cryptococcal meningoencephalitis].

We performed serial brain perfusion SPECT studies using 123I-IMP in the course of cryptococcal meningoencephalitis. Increased perfusion was detected in the cerebellum coinciding with the appearance of the abnormality on MRI. The perfusion in the lesion was then decreased as the abnormality on MRI disappeared. Cryptococcal meningoencephalitis should be also taken in the differential diagnosis when the inflammatory brain lesion shows increased perfusion.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Tissue-specific increase in norepinephrine turnover by central interleukin-1, but not by interleukin-6, in rats.

To examine the effects of brain cytokines on the sympathetic nervous system, norepinephrine (NE) turnover in peripheral organs (spleen, lung, diaphragm, pancreas, heart, liver, kidney, and interscapular brown adipose tissue) was assessed after intraperitoneal or intracerbroventricular administrations of human recombinant interleukin (IL)-1 beta and IL-6 in rats. An intraperitoneal injection of IL-1 (1 microgram/rat) accelerated NE turnover in the spleen, lung, diaphragm, and pancreas without appreciable effects in other organs examined. When IL-1 was injected intracerebroventricularly at much lower doses (1-100 ng/rat), a dose-dependent increase in NE turnover was observed in the spleen, lung, diaphragm, and pancreas. IL-6 did not affect NE turnover in every organ examined, even when it was given at much higher doses, 100 micrograms/rat and 100 ng/rat for intraperitoneal and intracerebroventricular injections, respectively. In contrast to tissue NE turnover, plasma corticosterone level was increased after the administration of IL-6 as well as IL-1, regardless of the site of administration. These results suggest that central IL-1, but not IL-6, increases sympathetic nerve activity in some specific organs, whereas both cytokines are effective for adrenocortical activation. A possible role of the sympathetic nervous system in physiological and immune responses to central IL-1 was discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Heart disease deaths in a Japanese urban area evaluated by clinical and police records.

BACKGROUND: By national statistics, Japanese ischemic heart disease (IHD) mortality is one of the lowest of all industrialized countries, and the proportion of deaths due to heart failure in heart disease is the highest. There may be a difference in diagnostic preference between Japan and other industrialized countries. METHODS AND RESULTS: IHD deaths according to the death certificates were reevaluated with World Health Organization MONICA criteria for those 25 to 74 years old by use of clinical and police records in a Japanese city with a population of 347,000. Their cause of death was given on the death certificates as IHD (International Classification of Diseases [ICD], ninth revision, codes 410-414), heart failure (428), or other heart diseases (393-405, 415-427, 429) in 1984 through 1986. Some deaths in 1985 through 1986 from stroke (430-438) or other diseases (250, 272, 278, 440-448, 797-799) were added. Of 409 subjects, 397 (97%) could be examined. Reevaluation of the 106 deaths originally diagnosed as IHD yielded 73 IHDs and 11 sudden deaths of unknown origin (SD), and reevaluation of 160 deaths originally called heart failure yielded 26 IHDs and 50 SDs. In total, reevaluation of all 397 deaths yielded 101 IHDs and 69 SDs. Some 88% of SD cases were originally certified as heart failure (72%) or IHD (16%). Only two SDs were originally certified as stroke. CONCLUSIONS: Assuming that 30% of SDs were due to IHD, the number of IHD deaths would be 122, which is 11% larger than the number of IHD deaths according to the death certificates. After reevaluation, the IHD mortality in this study area still was the lowest in the industrialized countries.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

[A case of MELAS associated with prosopagnosia, topographical disorientation and PLED].

We report a case of mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) associated with prosopagnosia, topographical disorientation, and periodic lateralized epileptiform discharge (PLED) on electroencephalography (EEG) in a 23-year-old right-handed man. The first MELAS attack occurred on March 1, 1991, while the patient was drinking. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a lesion of abnormal intensity in the left occipital lobe. The second attack occurred on October 1, 1991. This time, the major symptoms were visual loss of acute onset, nausea, and vomiting. EEG examination showed transient PLED. MRI revealed a new area of abnormal intensity in the right occipital lobe, lingual gyrus, fusiform gyrus and the posterior part of the parahippocampal gyrus. During the clinical course of the patient, prosopagnosia and topographical disorientation appeared. There have been few reports of MELAS associated with prosopagnosia, topographical disorientation, and PLED. However, MELAS attacks tend to occur in the cortex of the occipital lobe. We therefore believe that these neuropsychological symptoms and PLED are likely to be associated with MELAS.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

[Relationship between thermal threshold and population of peripheral nerve fibers].

The relationship skin thermal threshold (TT) and density of both myelinated and unmyelinated fibers were investigated in 12 patients with various peripheral nerve diseases including Crow-Fukase syndrome, carcinomatous neuropathy and Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. The TT was measured at a site above the medial tibial condyle using a thermal threshold tester. The TT was defined as the threshold at which a slight rise or fall in temperature could be detected. The size of the skin stimulation area was 13.5 cm2, the temperature change rate was 1 degrees C/sec, and the basal temperature was set at 34 degrees C. A sural nerve biopsy was performed and an image processor (IBAS) was used to measure the nerve fiber density. The TT in the patients with peripheral nerve disease was found to be elevated when compared with that of the 74 healthy controls (mean age of 38.1 +/- 13.3 years). Elevation of the TT has an intimate relation to damage of the small myelinated nerve fibers. In conclusion, unmyelinated fibers may play a relatively minor role in conveying thermal sensation.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

[Magnetic resonance imaging of spinal cord lesions in 22 multiple sclerosis patients].

We reviewed MRI findings in 22 patients (37 cases) with clinically diagnosed multiple sclerosis (MS) with spinal cord lesions. The spinal cord lesions were detected in 17 (46%) of these 37 cases on MRI. The cervical cord lesions were more detectable than other spinal cord lesions. At the thoracic level, the upper lesions were more detectable than the lower ones. In this study, no correlation was found between the disease duration, the rate of functional disturbance and the detectable rate of spinal cord lesions. The characteristic findings of the lesions were swelling and the enhancement effect of Gd-DTPA in the patient group with a disease duration of less than three years, and atrophic change in the patient group with a disease duration of greater than seven years. The period of the enhancement effect of Gd-DTPA varied in each case, and it may reflect the clinical course. Syrinx-like lesions were found in four cases. In one of them, atrophic change was found in the same region six months after the follow up study. Although the precise reason for the syrinx-like lesion was unclear, a relationship between syrinx-like lesion and atrophy of the spinal cord was suggested. The MRI findings of the spinal cord lesions in MS varied in each case and in each stage of the disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Cytokine-induced change in hypothalamic norepinephrine turnover: involvement of corticotropin-releasing hormone and prostaglandins.

Changes in norepinephrine (NE) turnover in restricted brain regions were examined in rats after administration of the major mediators of the acute phase response, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF). An increase in NE turnover was observed after intraperitoneal injection of IL-1 (1 microgram/rat) in the whole hypothalamus and several specific hypothalamic nuclei, but not in the medulla oblongata and cerebral cortex. The stimulatory effect of IL-1 was mimicked by an intracerebroventricular injection of much lower doses of IL-1 (10-100 ng/rat). This IL-1-induced increase in hypothalamic NE turnover was blocked by the pretreatment with either indomethacin (cyclooxygenase inhibitor) or anti-corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) antibody but not by naloxone. Intracerebroventricular injection of CRH increased NE turnover not only in the hypothalamus but also in the medulla oblongata and cerebral cortex. However, prostaglandin (PG) E2 and PGF2 alpha did not show such effect. It was therefore suggested that IL-1 activates noradrenergic neurons projecting to the hypothalamus by its direct action to the brain, and that CRH and eicosanoid-cyclooxygenase product(s) within the brain are involved in this process. In contrast, neither IL-6 nor TNF influenced brain NE turnover regardless of whether they were given intraperitoneally or intracerebroventricularly. Thus, although IL-6 and TNF, as well as IL-1, show common central effects such as fever and pituitary-adrenal activation, these effects may be independent of the activation of NE metabolism in the hypothalamus.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Intractable hiccups and sleep apnea syndrome in multiple sclerosis: report of two cases.

Two cases of multiple sclerosis associated with intractable hiccups (IH) and sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) are reported. Lesions were detected in the tegmentum of the medulla oblongata by magnetic resonance imaging. In one case, high dose methylprednisolone was remarkably effective for the IH. For the SAS, amitriptyline was effective in one case. The IH and SAS are thought to be important symptoms when a lesion occurs in the tegmentum of the medulla oblongata, including the paramedian and lateral reticular formations. If IH appears in conjunction with a lesion in the tegmentum of the medulla oblongata, one must be vigilant for the development of SAS.

Amitriptyline↗
PubMed1993

Associations of serum total cholesterol, different types of stroke, and stenosis distribution of cerebral arteries. The Akita Pathology Study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The relation between serum total cholesterol levels and stroke is controversial. The Akita Pathology Study provides data on the association of serum total cholesterol, different types of stroke, and distribution of stenosis in cerebral arteries. METHODS: The data are based on 750 autopsied men aged 30 years and older who were admitted to a local hospital in northeast Japan between 1966 and 1984. The overall autopsy rate was 88%. The grade of stenosis in the cerebral arteries was determined blindly by one pathologist using Baker's method for basal cerebral arteries (atherosclerosis scores) and using microscopic examination of a single basal ganglion slide for the intracerebral penetrating arteries (arteriolosclerosis scores). RESULTS: The age-adjusted mean value of serum total cholesterol concentration was 164 mg/dL for cerebral hemorrhage, 177 mg/dL for infarction in penetrating artery regions, and 200 mg/dL for infarction in cortical artery regions. Mean serum cholesterol was lower in deaths caused by cerebral hemorrhage than in those caused by myocardial infarction and other cardiovascular disease. Mean atherosclerosis score of basal cerebral arteries was low for cerebral hemorrhage, intermediate for penetrating artery infarction, and high for cortical artery infarction. Stenosis of both basal and penetrating arteries was minimum or absent in cases of cerebral hemorrhage. Only the basal arteries were stenotic in cases of cortical artery infarction, whereas both basal and penetrating arteries were stenosed in cases of penetrating artery infarction. There were positive associations of serum cholesterol with stenosis of basal and penetrating arteries. Among cases of cerebral hemorrhage, serum total cholesterol levels were even lower in men with no significant stenosis in either basal or penetrating arteries than in men with stenosis in either type of artery. CONCLUSIONS: The association of serum cholesterol with pathogenesis varies among stroke types. Elevated serum cholesterol levels were associated with the presence of cortical artery infarction, while low serum cholesterol levels were associated with cerebral hemorrhage.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

[A case of cryptococcal meningitis in an HTLV-1 carrier].

We report a case of 73-year-old male HTLV-I carrier with cryptococcal meningitis. The patient, who was born in Taiwan, has raised golden pheasants for ten years and bantams for five years. Antibody to HIV was negative. Flow cytometric study of the peripheral lymphocytes showed reduced CD4+CD45RA+ (naive cells) and increased CD4+CD45RO+ (memory cells), CD3+CD25+ and CD3+ HLA-DR(DR)+ cells. Lymphocyte responses to phytohemagglutinin and concanavalin A were depressed. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cells and serum and CSF antigen to cryptococcal neoformans were decreased by therapy with fluconazole and flucytosine. Although the naive, memory and CD3+DR+ cell abnormalities showed no change, the CD45RA/CD45RO ratio and CD3+CD25+ level tended to improve. Opportunistic infections such as cryptococcal meningitis may be induced by severe decreases in naive cells and increases in memory cells in HTLV-I carriers.

Aged↗
PubMed1993

[Clinical diagnosis of movement disorders--evoked potentials].

As a clinical diagnostic approach, the evoked potential has been used to differentiate movement disorders, especially myoclonic movements, Giant somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) and long-loop reflex to electrical stimulation of the peripheral nerve are commonly employed in the evaluation of patients with myoclonus. Recently, abnormality in a specific component of SEP frontal N30 has been reported in focal dystonia. Jerk locked back averaging has been applied to cortical reflex myoclonus, minipolymyoclonus, cortical tremor, simple tics, chorea-acanthocytosis, Huntington's chorea, etc. Silent period locked averaging is also used for asterixis. With these new electrophysiological techniques, evaluation of functional mechanisms in movement disorders may be expected, with fruitful results.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMed1992

[A case of multiple sclerosis with intractable hiccups and sleep apnea syndrome].

A 48-year-old female with multiple sclerosis (MS) accompanied by intractable hiccups of over one month' duration and the sleep apnea syndrome was reported. This MS patient had been well controlled until September 16, 1991 when she experienced nausea, vomiting and hiccups. The patient was admitted to Kawasaki Medical School Hospital on October 9, 1991. A physical examination revealed intractable hiccups. T1-weighted MRI showed a low and T2-weighted image disclosed a high signal intensity area in the tegmentum of the medulla oblongata. The intractable hiccups and vomiting improved with intravenous high dose methylprednisolone injection therapy. The following day, she complained of insomnia and her family observed severe snoring and apnea during the night. These symptoms and the results of a breathing monitor were compatible with the sleep apnea syndrome. These symptoms disappeared following the administration of amitriptyline. There have been few reports of the combination of intractable hiccups and the sleep apnea syndrome in MS. The MRI findings suggest that the causative lesion of these symptoms is in the tegmentum of the medulla oblongata.

Amitriptyline↗
PubMed1992

[A case of Sotos syndrome associated with peripheral nerve involvements].

A case of the Sotos syndrome associated with peripheral nerve involvements was reported. A 52-year-old male was admitted to Kawasaki Medical School Hospital because of gait disturbance, muscle atrophy, and weakness in both hands. This case was diagnosed as the Sotos syndrome based on the following symptoms and findings, acromegaloid features, hypertrophic changes in the hands and feet, a history of epileptic episodes, a low IQ, a normal growth hormone value, and no tumor lesion in the pituitary gland. Radiological examination disclosed a cauliflower-like appearance of the finger tips and thickness of the heel pads. Brain CT and MRI revealed diffuse mild brain atrophy. An electroencephalogram showed diffuse theta waves with sharp waves in the right parietal region. A needle electromyogram revealed neurogenic change in both upper and lower limbs. A nerve conduction study disclosed the carpal tunnel syndrome and cubital tunnel syndrome. These findings suggest that, as in the case of acromegaly, entrapment neuropathy and peripheral neuropathy can also be induced in the Sotos syndrome.

Brain Diseases↗
PubMed1992

[A case of bilateral blepharospasm responsive to edrophonium].

A case of bilateral blepharospasm who registered the efficacy of edrophonium was reported. The case is a 49-year-old female. She had been in good health until January, 1991 when she complained of difficulty in opening her eyes while driving. Thereafter the condition progressed to such a degree that she was unable to experience a comfortable life. Her blinking rate did not changed. The symptoms were triggered by stress or some physical action, such as walking or driving. They were attenuated by taking a bath, sleep or sedation. The severity of the symptoms varied during the day and from day to day. Neurological examination revealed bilateral spasms of the orbicular oculi muscles, and occasionally of the orbicular oris muscles, sternocleidmastoid muscles and the perinasal regions. Neither orolingual dyskinesia nor other involuntary movements were detected. Surface electromyography (EMG) disclosed tonic discharges mainly from the orbicular oculi muscles. The abnormal spasm disappeared with the injection of edrophonium chloride. The test for the serum antiacetylcholine receptor antibody was negative and a repetitive stimulation EMG showed no waning phenomenon. No thymoma or thymus abnormalities were detected by pneumomediastinography. A needle EMG revealed neurogenic change in the distal portion of the limbs. A single fiber EMG showed elongation of the jitter value and the blocking phenomenon. Although distigmine bromide was ineffective against the spasm, pyridostigmine bromide and the local injection of botulinum toxin were very effective.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Blepharospasm↗